The Korean Metal Workers' Union (KMWU)'s motor sales association has called for an investigation into Hyundai Motor Group by the prosecution and the Labor Ministry, claiming that the group is engaged in unfair labor practices.
It asserted that the prosecution ordered the Seoul Labor Office to investigate the group's unfair labor practices, but the office is only reading the face of Hyundai Motor. It argued that the office has not even investigated witnesses for the past four months even though it has been under the direction of the prosecution.
The association held a news conference in front of the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Administration on Oct. 23, saying, "The ministry has failed to follow the principle of investigation into a main company on unfair labor practices occurred at subcontractors. The administration has deliberately delayed the investigation, causing numerous labor repression at Hyundai and Kia dealers nationwide."
It urged the investigation, saying, "The Seoul Administrative Court admitted that union members were workers under the union law, not individual businesses. And it judged that the contract cancellation of the past was unfair."
The local branch said, "The company massively laid off its regular workers in 1998 and filled them with non-regular workers. As a result, its net profit surged from about 700 billion won to 23 trillion won. It was possible by exploiting non-regular workers."
"We formed a union to improve such a problem, but Hyundai closed its dealerships and fired its members," it added.
Jeong Joon-young, a lawyer at the Metal Law Institute, said, "The Labor Ministry has issued an order to correct illegal deployment to GM Korea, but it has not issued a correction order to Hyundai Motor for 14 years."
Meanwhile, the local branch filed a complaint with the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in June, saying that the Hyundai Motor Group violated the labor rights of irregular auto sales workers.
